Yesterday, we heard about how director David Petrarca, who helmed a couple of episodes of Game of Thrones‘ second season, told a writers’ festival at the University of Western Australia that illegal downloads don’t matter because they help create a “cultural buzz” that propels a series to greater success. “That’s how [shows] survive,” he said.

I’m not sure that invalidates Petrarca’s earlier comments. How many millions have HBO made from DVDs and Blu-rays of Game of Thrones? I imagine it’s probably a safe bet that not everyone who watches Thrones on a weekly basis run out and buy them on disc, and it’s also highly unlikely that people would just plunk down $30-$40 on a box set they have no idea that they’re going to like, at least not before sampling the goods. Thrones is one of the most downloaded series online after all, the two are undoubtedly related.

Compromise? Well, HBO does have HBO GO, a streaming service for those who subscribe to HBO already. But it that practical given that fewer and fewer people want to shell out for cable? Food for thought.

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